CONSUMER REPORTS SEES HIGHER QUALITY IN CARS

The Consumer Reports annual auto issue finds that new cars aresafer and higher quality, while used cars are more reliable.

The issue, which hits newsstands March 31, also has encouragingnews on new car prices: They probably won't go up.

The issue includes test results of 122 new cars and lighttrucks. It rates six of every 10 vehicles as "recommended" or"promising."In used cars, a survey of about 600,000 readers found that 25percent reported problems with one-year-old vehicles. That's downfrom about 31 percent and 28 percent in the past two years.Automakers "are getting the word that consumers want reliablecars," said David A. Champion, director of Consumers Union's autotest department.Domestic manufacturers are quickly catching up with foreigncompetitors in terms of quality, Champion said. The OldsmobileIntrigue is one of the best new cars from General Motors Corp. "ina long time," Champion said. He also liked Ford Motor Co.'s MercuryMystique, which he called a "poor man's BMW."But foreign automakers continue to dominate the magazine'sfavorable ratings. The top picks among new models included mainstaycars such as the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry. But there were newforeign entries as well, including the Volkswagen Passat car andToyota Sienna minivan.None of the 30 used vehicles listed as "good bets" was anAmerican brand. Of 32 used vehicles listed as "reliability risks,"all but four were American brands.The Acura Integra was the most trouble-free car of 1997, withonly three problems reported per 100 cars. For domestic models, themost trouble-free was the Chrysler Concorde, which had 15 problemsper 100 cars.Automakers take the issue's ratings seriously and have said"recommend" ratings can affect sales.Jake Kelderman, executive director for industry affairs of theNational Automobile Dealers Association, said more people than everare coming into dealerships armed with information from magazinesor the Internet.As for the Consumer Reports issue, he said, "There's a segmentof the population that's very tuned in to that."